Hey Colin!

I'm heading up I-84. They had me routed over I-82, but I'm gonna run the Gorge to I-5 instead. I've got 47,500 on board and the hill-climbing doesn't seem like the way to go on this run. We'll see what I get coming out of Seattle on Tuesday.

I got my unload/load done real early this morning. I'm taking my re-start before hitting it for WA. This has been a great 3600 mile first week as an O/O. But I am fragged.....

Tomorrow's chill-time with BB will see the installation of the top splitter. Perfect timing, because there will be a bunch of hill-work to do and I am so freakin' heavy. Fully fueled, I figure that I am right at 79,000. We'll know when I hit the scale tomorrow afternoon. BB weighs in at 20,200 with full tanks.

Meanwhile, it's out to dinner.....

Be back soon with more boring and irrelevant newbie-with-laptop adventures.... :twisted: :twisted: just to piss you off even more.... :twisted: :twisted:


8) :lol: 8) :lol: 8) :lol: 8) :lol: 8) :lol: 8) :lol: 8) :lol:

 

Read all 11-pages...yawn...over the past few...yawn...(excuse me!) days. (he-he -- just kidding) :P

Good stuff. Let the adventure continue! 8)

 

 

Written while snoring..... Yeah, it's the valium and the thorazine that really put me down, so while I am near comatose, I use what remaining cognizance I have to write this BS. I don't really drive a truck, either. I just make it up between doses. :shock:

I don't believe that you are kidding. I'm really offended by your remark. After I hunt you down and bludgeon you with my Mac, I'm gonna OD on my meds so I don't upset anyone else with my incessant drivel. ops:

 

Never been blungeoned by a Mac before. A PC--yes--actually more than one PC. Each time I fought back and the PC won. Darn #*&~! blue screen of death! I'm learnin' though...now I just throw the durn thing out the window at 65mph. Feel much better until the realization hits me that I need another one. Sigh. PC won again.

BTW...have you seen the PC vs MAC TV commercials? Love 'em. May get a MAC again some day.

BTW#2, when you're all hopped up on meds, I'd advise NOT tinkering with the dosage. Otherwise you might wake up and start making sense! :P :lol:

Safe travels to ya!

 

I picked up a load.
I dropped it somewhere.
I called my mom.
--------------------------

Oh, yeah. We do it all the time…

OK. And now for something completely different.

While sitting through my 34 hour restart in Texas, I got my splitter kit installed. Kenworth wanted $350.00 to do the job which I got handled with the simplest of tools in 1.5 hours. Easy. I also got my clutch linkage adjusted properly. Also easy.

I am dead tired this evening from running the tail of I-84 and then north up to Seattle. BUT, I wanted to make sure that my thread stayed way the f^ck up there on the list.
-----------------------------------

But all I got was the voicemail.

 

Well, as you might have guessed, the trip up from Fort Worth was quite a serious haul. Time constraints made it what it was, but we forge forward… I got my drop done bright and early, as I awoke at the gate to the drop site. Good planning and a wise suggestion, if you can pull it off.

This was a fun trip, despite the squeeze. I hooked up with a friend of mine, who pulls flat for Watkins Shepard. We crossed paths in Wichita, KS. He was there after just having bought a used all-aluminum 48’ x 102” spread. Prior to that, he bought a ’95 KW T-600 for really cheap. Sure, he threw some money at the tractor and the trailer, but now he owns his rig for less than what most would pay for a tractor alone. It was good to see him after almost one year since the last face-to-face, but we yak on the phone all the time. Like me, he feels that he has become successful in trucking. My situation will not yield quite the level of income as his, but who cares. I am off to a very solid start, and as time will show, Swift’s lease situation is very good as long as you are really willing to work smart and hard. I qualify on both counts.

My next stop was an overnight in Glenwood Springs, CO. Running the passes up out of Denver was a blast. I hit I-70 west after fuel and a shower at the Denver terminal. I was one of the very few trucks out that night, so I had plenty of time to get the hang of splitting the top four. What a difference! As there is a 200 rpm spread between high and low in each gear, keeping every last bit of road speed becomes much easier. Just a flick of the red button, feather the fuel, and clunk, off we go again. Even with 47,600 on the deck, my mileage from Denver to SLC was 5.9 mpg. I would imagine that I would have gotten less mpg were I to only have four top cogs to work with instead of eight.

I rang two dear friends of mine, who live up near Aspen. Both of them came down to Glenwood to join me for breakfast. It was great too see them again and share stories of “days gone by”. I now think that I may make some time next winter, and go boarding with some of my old buds. And why not… It wouldn’t hurt my feelings to go ripping through the trees again up at the ‘Burn on Snowmass.

I got people: I had my empty call in during the wee hours today. Having gotten unloaded, I found a quiet place to park, while awaiting another load assignment. Great opportunity to catch a nap. After waking a few hours later, I saw nothing on the QualCom. Hmm. Must be one of those very few times in where I may have a little waiting before getting moving again. No matter. I boogied back to the Sumner yard and promptly fell back asleep again.

At 17:15, the QualCom starts beeping again. It was my Mid-West DM, Barb. She is such a doll. I called her to find out what she had. We shared some good chatter, and then she said that she was sorry that I had to wait all day to get a load assignment. She didn’t have anything until the last minute today, and then a bunch of work came in. She went on further to tell me that my DM and fleet manager all wanted to be notified when she got me pre-planned. None of them wanted me sitting for too long and all of them wanted me loaded first. Barb, who, like all the other flatbed planners and DM’s in Gary, usually knock off at 16:30 during the week. But not today. She said she wasn’t going to split until she had me and a few others booked.

I made it very clear to her that this was just one example of why I chose to contract myself to Swift. As corny as it may sound, it’s the people behind me who make me feel so confident in my decision to take Swift so seriously. They know I am paying $100.00 a day for the privilege of sitting in this thing, and Barb wasn’t going to leave me hanging for one moment longer than absolutely necessary. Made even more warm and fuzzy was the fact of concern from Joel and Adam, my DM and Fleet managers. These people are every bit as committed to my success as I am. And that feels really good. And… this kind of extra attention is very consistent with Mr. Moyes’ recent letter of intent presented to the driver pool. This company will return to caring for it’s drivers. And even though that is all I have personally ever experienced, it would seem that there is room for improvement elsewhere in the organization. So be it. If Swift goes out of its way to retain good drivers, the practice will certainly contribute heartily to the overall health and well being of the entire company and its employees. Suffice to say, I am proud to be doing my part, which has not gone unnoticed.

So: One more good night’s sleep, an early am pick-up and yours truly heads out to Lowng G-Island. New York City, just like I pictured it. Skyscrapers ‘n ev-y-thang…. I have some good friends in Manhattan. It’ll be interesting to see if I can park BB somewhere and go play….

 

Hello?

Anyone home?

 

Geez, you really know how to hurt a guy!! We sold our sailboat here a little while ago.... :cry: But, on the other hand...we're busy as a pack of pirates in an unsecure anchorage shopping for a trawler with "twin iron gennies"!! 8) 8)

Clint.... I've been reading your posts here, and needless to say... I'm really happy you found your niche!! Sounds like you are doing well, and thats GREAT!! Just goes to show...not everything about a company has to be less than good..

I do believe you sent me a cell #, and I can't seem to find it... :? Do me a favor and send it to me again, ok? Seems you have been running around in much the same area I tend to haul my tanker.... I'm going to PM you the tractor # and my cell...

Again, I'm really happy for you!!

 

Skywalker....
When I toss this corporate BS where I've resided for way too long and jump on the highway, I plan to move to FLA (maybe Jax area) and aquire a "mobile waterfront property". I go back n forth between sail and a trawler. Real room to live on vs feelin the lady heel over to a freshening (free) wind.....ah jeez here I go again...
So why did you give up the sail boat?

Sorry bout the hijack Clint...but, ya old salt; you love this sort of conversation anyway :wink: